


Freaky Friday

by TheLodgersEnthusiast (Morgan_Molliniere)



Category: The Glass Scientists (Webcomic)
Genre: Freaky Friday - Freeform, Gen, Not Canon Compliant, Self-Indulgent, in fact this fic has barely anything canon in it save for backstory and characterization, will add more tags as the story goes on, yes this is gonna be wild
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-22
Updated: 2020-01-23
Packaged: 2020-03-09 14:18:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 14,953
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18918727
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Morgan_Molliniere/pseuds/TheLodgersEnthusiast
Summary: Something weird happens to Jekyll and Hyde, and they chalk it up to simply being the formula acting up. But upon learning what's happening to the people around them, they learn that it goes deeper than that.





	1. Transformation Twist

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! It would probably be nice if I updated my SE + TGS and DR + TGS fics, but no, instead I choose to make this after a little thought I had this morning.
> 
> As the tags say, this is non canon compliant, so don't expect anything referring to the canon plot anytime soon. Sure, the fact that Frankenstein and Creature are up there means they did make it to the Society, but who knows what happened then in this non-canon timeline?
> 
> This is also an exercise in writing whatever I want no matter how ridiculous it may seem. And body swap fun!

When Henry Jekyll woke up that morning, he felt unbelievably...nice. He chalked it up to choosing to have a good night's sleep for once instead of letting Hyde run around town. In fact, the night before had passed so fast that he didn't remember it anyway. Not that it mattered. He yawned, and then allowed himself a good smile, before looking at the window next to his bed. Even though the curtains were drawn, he could make out the sunshine eager to come through. Well, he thought. Why not let it come through? And so he moved to get up, turning to his side.

And then he realized it.

His hands...were not his normal hands. In fact, they looked much smaller, the hair on his skin more thick. He looked them over, sitting up as he did so. And as he did, he realized that his arms were much shorter, too. As such, his shirt didn't fit him.

...Wait a minute.

Jekyll jumped out of bed, and went to the mirror on the other side of the room with unusual speed. He stared into it – and all his good feelings from waking up were gone.

For he had woken up in the body of Edward Hyde.

He stared into his reflection, until he was sure that he wasn't just hallucinating, that this wasn't a dream. He turned away from the mirror, and then his eyes went to the door.

“ _What the hell happened here?”_

“Oh, good, you're finally awake,” Jekyll deadpanned. Then he turned back to the mirror, and gestured to himself. “Care to explain what this is about?”

“ _You and I share memories, how could I know what this is about if you don't?”_ Hyde asked, talking through his reflection. _“And you know I didn't come out last night, no thanks to your need to 'relax' or something.”_

Jekyll sighed. “Well, I don't remember anything from last night that caused this.”

Hyde nodded, and then his eyes widened in realization, before he put a hand to his chin.

“What is it?”

“ _...Do you remember last night at all?”_

“...” Jekyll looked down, and tried to recall. Nothing. “...No.”

“ _Strange. Maybe you drank a lot?”_

“Hyde.”

“ _I'm kidding, doctor!”_ Hyde said, waving a hand. Whatever thoughtful mood he had been in was gone now, replaced with his usual cheer. _“Either way, we can fix this easily enough. Just go to the study and transform back into your Jekyll self.”_

“And how do you suppose we do that without Poole catching me? Or rather, you? He knows you didn't spend the night here.”

“ _What if you just tell him that you came in through the window and stayed the night, like you know...”_

“Confound it, Hyde, stop telling other people you and I are sleeping together!”

“ _I won't, but maybe you will this time!”_

“You're hopeless.”

“ _I know I am, but what are you?”_

Jekyll shook his head. “Never mind. I'll just try to sneak out.”

 

* * *

 

 

With that, he peeked out of the door, and looked around. The hallway seemed devoid of people so far, so he snuck out as quietly as he could. He cursed the fact that this house had barely anything to hide behind in the hallway, yet kept his ears alerted for footsteps.

However, to his relief, he had reached the study without much difficulty, and he went inside before anyone could spot him. He spotted the transformation formula and the salt, and went to get it.

“ _I can't believe how easy that was,”_ Hyde said. _“Maybe this will be a good day, or whatever you were thinking as you woke up.”_

“Well, I do hope this will be the only problem I'll be facing today,” Jekyll agreed, taking up the flask and the test tube full of salt. He poured the salt into the flask, and watched the colors change, before bringing the formula to his lips and drinking.

The transformation took a hold of him, and with it came its familiar pains. There was no point in describing it, other than he felt his body changing, and he hoped that this mess would be over as he squeezed his eyes shut.

...However, it was not over.

Hyde found himself the one who was opening his eyes, and kneeling on the floor. He looked down at himself – his clothes were now just the right size on his longer arms and shapely hands. Slowly, he got up, and then examined the mirror in this room.

“...What. The. Fuck.”

It was strange to hear that in Jekyll's voice.

“ _What happened?”_ Jekyll asked, no longer able to contain his distress. _“If this is another one of your tricks–“_

“I swear, this is none of my tricks!” Hyde said, turning away from the mirror. “If anything, it should be one of yours! You're the one practicing this alchemy and all that!”

“ _Excuse me, I don't exactly recall making the formula in such a way that the appearances we have control over has been switched! In fact, I don't remember anything!”_

Hyde inhaled deeply, and then exhaled.

And then he swore, “FUCK!”

 

* * *

 

Well, Jekyll and Hyde had to admit at least, that the formula had worked. The body had transformed so that it looked like Jekyll was in control, and Hyde faked being him easily enough. Jekyll supposed it was good that Hyde wasn't even trying to make him look ridiculous right now. Well, save for stuffing himself at breakfast, but Poole had simply chalked it up to Jekyll being unusually lively this morning.

After breakfast, Hyde set out of the house, and got into a cab heading for the Society. He slouched over in his seat, before moving so that he was now lying down on the seat.

“Ugh, this is uncomfortable, how do you even keep riding these things?” Hyde asked.

“ _They get you places; now sit properly.”_

“The driver isn't going to notice us, and this is an enclosed space. Now, let me have this. I'm the one in control, not you.”

“ _Yes, well, that's the strange part. You're the one in control of my body, and I'm the one in control of yours.”_

“It's the same body, just different faces.”

“ _We don't need to get into that,”_ Jekyll said. _“I just wonder what happened with us._ ”

“Obviously, it's some strangeness with the formula, something must be wrong with it,” Hyde suggested, before shrugging. “Or wrong with us, I don't really know.”

“ _Whatever it is, let's hope we can figure it out. We need this over with before the day is done. I have a lot of important things to do.”_

“Same here.”

Jekyll sighed. Same old Hyde.

They reached the Society soon enough, and after Hyde got out and paid, he turned to look at the Society. There were two people standing outside the doors, arguing a bit, and Jekyll found himself a bit surprised. Hyde walked up to the two of them – it was Rachel and Lanyon, and they both looked up at him when he came up to them. And for some reason, Rachel was wearing a rather fine dress with her hair undone, while Lanyon looked a bit disheveled and unshaven.

“Uh...” Hyde tried, before clearing his throat, and then standing up straight, putting his hands together, a perfect imitation of Jekyll. “What are you two doing here?” he asked. “You couldn't wait inside?”

Immediately, Rachel came closer to Hyde, and threw her arms open dramatically. “Henry!” she said, in an accent that was not her own. “You have to help us!”

“Help you?” Hyde asked.

Lanyon looked at Hyde as well – his face was just as troubled as Rachel's was. “Look, we don't have a lot of time to explain, but something weird has happened to us.”

“ 'Weird' doesn't even begin to cover it!” Rachel said. “Henry, we've switched bodies!”

Jekyll and Hyde were both at a loss for words.

Well, only two Hyde could utter in response.

“Wait, what?!”

 


	2. Not Quite An Uptown Girl

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rachel wakes up to a very unusual morning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's a little more explanation of the situation before everything starts to get really wild in here!

Rachel Pidgley woke up next to someone.

Which would have been a funny story if Rachel remembered how she had gotten there in the first place. But nope, she didn't remember anything. She just found herself lying in bed, with a presence next to her on this...oddly large bed. Huh.

She yawned, and then turned to her left. Might as well figure out who this mystery person was. Maybe that way she could get closer to piecing together what happened last night.

(Did she drink last night? Why couldn't she remember a thing? It was just a blur to her.)

When she did turn to her side, she realized that she was face to face with someone she knew – it was Lisa Lanyon. She refocused for a bit, before her eyes widened, and she sat up quickly in bed.

What the hell was she doing in bed with Lisa? And where was she? She found herself breathing a bit quicker, before looking down. And then she looked down at herself, and her hands.

Her hands...these were not her hands.

She didn't have much time to ponder on this, though, before Lisa stirred, and she looked down at her as she woke up. Lisa looked up at her, before smiling a bit.

“Well now, you look rather troubled so early in the morning,” she commented. “Busy day today?”

Rachel put a hand to her face. There was stubble on it. But she couldn't grow stubble. “I...” she tried. “Lisa?”

“That's my name,” Lisa said, sitting up as well. “Had a bad dream?”

“No, I...” Rachel suddenly found herself unable to form words.

“Robert?” Lisa asked.

That was when it all clicked.

Her name was not Robert – but she knew someone who did have that name.

She was in Robert Lanyon's body.

 

* * *

 

Quickly, Rachel got dressed to go outside – she felt really, really weird doing this since this was not her body, not to mention she knew this was Lanyon's – and ate breakfast hurriedly. She had to go to her house right away to see what had happened to her body, and just what the hell was going on.

She was halfway out the door when Lisa called, “You're going out like that, Robert?”

Rachel paused, and then turned around. “Going out like what?” she asked, a tad nervously.

“You aren't normally in so big a hurry that you forget to shave, at least,” Lisa pointed out. “Is everything alright?”

Rachel nodded. “No, no, everything's fine! I just...have to go see someone. Urgently. And, uh...it's a new look?”

Lisa stared at her, before shaking her head. “Sure, sure. Have fun with your new look,” she said, waving a goodbye.

Rachel waved as well, before closing the door behind her and hurrying out of Lanyon's place. She didn't have the heart to admit that she didn't shave because she didn't want to accidentally cut her face or anything. And besides, she was in a great hurry, and had no idea how men shaved their beards.

Once she was inside one of Lanyon's carriages, she made for her address as quickly as possible. During the ride she fretted over what could have happened, why she was like this – and if she was in Lanyon's body, did that mean Lanyon was in her body? The very thought unnerved her, but no more so than being in his body.

She wanted so badly to believe that this was a dream, that she would wake up soon. But she had enough reason to believe that this was real life, and therefore she had to figure it out.

Rachel arrived soon enough, and then got out. However, when she got to her place, she realized that there was a note on the door – and it was addressed to her. She plucked it off the door, and read it in its entirety.

_To Miss Rachel Pidgley,_

_If you've come here looking for me, then I'll be at the Society. I suspected that this might be the work of one of the Society's scientists, and I refrained from going to my house since you would have no reason coming to my house. And vice versa. Besides, I supposed we had to meet in a neutral area._

_Signed, Robert Lanyon._

Rachel put it down, and then sighed tiredly. She then looked up at the driver.

“Where to, sir?” he asked.

“To the Society for Arcane Sciences,” she said without missing a beat, getting back into the carriage.

 

* * *

 

Rachel had the fortune to arrive at the Society just as she spotted herself walking up to the door. She quickly got out, and ran up to herself, before calling out.

“Robert!” she said. “Robert!”

Sure enough, Lanyon responded, and looked up at her. She stopped to catch her breath, before frowning at him. “God, I can't believe what's happening!” she exclaimed. “I can't believe that we've switched bodies, and – and you're wearing one of my better dresses!” She straightened up, gesturing at him. “Why the hell are you wearing one of my better dresses?”

“What, are you saving it for a special occasion, or something?” Lanyon asked, looking down at himself. “It's not that much better, if I'm completely honest, but it is different from the plain old dresses you wear most of the time.”

“I wear plain old dresses for a reason!” she said. “And–“ she froze, before sputtering out, “–y-you saw my body, didn't you?!”

Lanyon looked her up and down, before pointing at her. “Well, if you're wearing that, it means you've seen my body too!”

“I didn't even see much!”

“Neither did I!”

“What's there to even see?”

“Same with you!”

She gasped in indignation, while Lanyon continued, “And while you're at it, you could have shaved!”

“I didn't want to cut myself!” she said. “What you should have done is at least tie my hair up a little!”

“As if I have any idea how to do that!”

Footsteps came up to them, and they both looked up to see Jekyll walking up to them. “Uh...” he said. He was...slouching? But only for a moment, before he straightened up, and put his hands together. “What are you two doing here?” he asked. “You couldn't wait inside?”

Lanyon came closer to Jekyll, and threw his arms open dramatically. “Henry!” he said. “You have to help us!”

“Help you?” Jekyll asked.

Look, we don't have a lot of time to explain, but something weird has happened to us,” Rachel added.

“ 'Weird' doesn't even begin to cover it!” Lanyon continued. “Henry, we've switched bodies!”

“...Wait, what?!”

 


	3. Bodily Difficulties

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Apparently, Jekyll, Hyde, Rachel, and Lanyon aren't the only ones with problems.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the point in the fanfic in which it gets really weird. Original characters and plot twists come to shine here! The original character of the chapter is Adam Frankenstein. I believe a lot of you who've been following my work have already met him. But for those who haven't, he's basically the second creation of Frankenstein.
> 
> But rest assured that all plot twists will be explained! If you don't like original characters in your fic, however, you can just click the Back button.
> 
> Alright? Alright. Let's get this show on the road!

“Wait, what?” Hyde asked. “How is this even possible?”

“I don't know how it happened, or why it happened,” Lanyon told him. “But I fear it might have to do with one of the mad scientists here.”

“But I don't think there are any mad scientists who specialize in having people switch bodies,” Hyde replied.

“Well, anything can happen in the Society,” Rachel pointed out. “If I could remember what happened last night, then it might be clearer.” Her eyes went from lanyon to Jekyll. “Do you two remember what happened last night?"

“That's the thing,” Lanyon said, holding his head. “I...I can't recall, either.”

Hyde opened his mouth to say something, but before he could, someone opened the door to the Society. All three of them looked up to see Adam Frankenstein standing there, looking them over.

“You've been out here all along, Dr. Jekyll,” he said, crossing his arms. “Come inside. There's something that has to be addressed.”

His no-nonsense tone made him sound very strange at the least, but Lanyon and Rachel were affected by it, and it was as if they couldn't refuse. Hyde didn't feel the same, so much as he was just curious as to what they should attend to. So he went in after them.

“ _Robert and Rachel have switched bodies?”_ Jekyll asked. _“How is that even possible?”_

“Beats me,” Hyde whispered in response. “I don't even know if this could be the work of any of the mad scientists here.”

“ _You don't think...what's happening with Robert and Rachel could be related to what we're going through?”_

Hyde frowned. “I thought it was just the potion.”

“ _What if it wasn't?”_

“...I guess we'll wait and see what Adam's got.”

Adam had led them to Jekyll's office, outside of which three people were waiting for them. It was Victoria Frankenstein, the Creature, and Jasper Kaylock. When they saw them, the Creature was the first to speak up.

“Ah, there you are!” he said. “Can you unlock the office and give us some privacy?”

Hyde raised an eyebrow, but slowly nodded. “Uh, sure,” he said, taking the keys to the office out of his pocket. He unlocked the doors, and then opened them, before letting everyone inside. Everyone went in, including Creature, who had some difficulty and cursed about the doorway, and then the ceiling. That was new.

He was the last to get in, and closed the door behind him, before smoothing over his suit, and removing his hat. “Well, now that we're all here,” he said, “would anyone mind explaining what's going on?”

“We could, but first,” Adam said, pointing to Lanyon and Rachel, “are you sure they could hear what we have to say?”

“Oh, I'm the co-founder of the Society; anything important you have to say can go to me too,” Lanyon said, putting a hand on his chest.

Frankenstein looked at Lanyon, tilting her head. “...I didn't know you were a co-founder too, Rachel,” she said.

Lanyon froze, while Rachel facepalmed. Hyde couldn't help but roll his eyes as well. Typical Lanyon. He then looked at the others. “They're experiencing some...personal difficulties with their bodies right now,” he said. “They stay with me for now.”

“Well, I guess if they're experiencing bodily difficulties, then we can talk with them about what's going on with us!” Frankenstein said, looking at Adam. “Right, Creature?”

Hyde looked at him. “Creature?!”

Adam – no, Creature waved a hand. “It's a strange business, Dr. Jekyll. But I am indeed the Creature,” here he gestured to those at his side, “Frankenstein is actually Adam, and the Creature is our creator.”

“Wow,” Hyde said. Then he looked at Frankenstein. “What's the view like up there?”

Frankenstein looked down at him. “Wouldn't you like to know.”

Creature cleared his throat, and then placed his hands behind his back. “We don't have time for jokes, Doctor,” he said. “What we need to know is what caused this, and how to undo it."

“Yes, I'm with the Creature on this one,” Lanyon agreed. “We need to get our bodies back, as quickly as possible.”

Adam brushed some hair out of his face, and then looked up at Rachel. “So you and Dr. Lanyon have switched bodies?” he asked, pointing at her.

Rachel laughed a bit. “Yeah, it's really bad. I'm just hoping I don't have to go to the toilet any time soon.”

“We aren't exactly eager to do the same in these bodies,” Adam replied.

The two of them laughed. Hyde looked at them, and then placed his hands on his hips. “So, we've got some bodily difficulties going on here,” he said. “What do you expect me to do about it?”

“Obviously, find out which of the Lodgers is responsible for this!” Lanyon exclaimed.

“I do not think any of these Lodgers were responsible for this.”

The others looked up, and Hyde turned to Jasper – he was the one who had spoken. He stood against the door, his back leaned against it, his hands together. But it wasn't in his usual nervous manner – no, it was with the confident air of someone who had something to say.

“This trick, it is not something any amateur could conjure up,” he said. “This is very advanced magic. If you will, it could be a sort of science – but it's unexplainable by the studies you have accumulated today.” He then chuckled. “At least, that is what I have gathered from looking around this Society.”

“...Is this the same Kaylock?” Frankenstein asked, raising a finger to point at him.

“Kaylock? No, someone far older,” he said. “Though I assume one of you could come up with my name.”

He then smiled straight at Hyde. “Remember, Henry Jekyll?” he asked. “You met me years ago, in the forest.”

Hyde's mouth fell open. As did Lanyon's. But the former was the one to speak.

“Morcant.”

 


	4. Ancient Whatever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Morcant's here, and they take a look at a possible cause of this strange situation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another OC here! This time, it's my Lodgersona Aurelia Cruz, who's solidified as basically a historian and a librarian for mad science here. As for why there's a library in the Society...well, why not?
> 
> And an unexpected ship has arrived in port!

Morcant nodded, a smile on her face. “Clever,” she said. “Then again, I should not be so surprised that you remember. Humans remember the most extraordinary things.”

“M-M-Morcant?” Lanyon stuttered. “That's Morcant? But how?”

“I do not know either how this came to be,” Morcant replied. “But now I am assured that I am where I need to be right now. If I am here, this might have had something to do with me, and I do not want any more people to suffer for something that I might have done.”

“Well, too bad, we are suffering,” Lanyon deadpanned.

Instead of looking insulted, Morcant smirked. “You have a mouth,” she said. “Robert, was it?”

Lanyon looked unnerved – possibly because she remembered his name – but only for a second, before he crossed his arms and looked away. Hyde looked back at Morcant, and took a step forward.

“Morcant?” he asked, a smile slowly appearing on his face. “I can't believe it! You still remember me?”

“You have done me a great service, of course,” she told him. Then she whispered, “But are you sure you're comfortable deceiving everyone like this?”

“Deceiving everyone?” Hyde asked. “How?”

“Well, I suppose you _are_ Henry Jekyll,” she said. “But you have become something else, as I feared.”

“You...feared?”

Lanyon watched them talking, meanwhile, and sighed. Then he looked up at Rachel – and she had a grin on her face that he could only describe as “stupidly giddy”.

“Oh, I can't believe that's Morcant! She sounds so cool!” she said.

“Yes, but she's in Mr. Kaylock's body,” Lanyon pointed out.

“Yeah, that's a complication, but we'll find Jasper soon enough!” Rachel said. “And it's _Morcant_!”

“I know, don't wear it out,” Lanyon said through gritted teeth.

Rachel looked down at him, and then her giddy grin turned to a mischievous one. “You're jealous, aren't you?”

“What? Of course not,” he said. “I just don't believe that any of this makes any sense.”

“Well, a lot of stuff in the Society doesn't make sense, and yet here we are,” Rachel said. “That has to mean something.”

Lanyon huffed. “Well...whatever.”

They finished talking just as Morcant looked at all of them, while Hyde watched her, a strange look on his face. Perhaps she had said something to him, but who knows, really?

“Are there any records of ancient magic here?” she asked. “Maybe if we can find any records of body switching, we might be able to figure out who is behind this.”

Adam raised a hand, slightly. “What about Miss Cruz? She's the Lodger who looks over documents of mad science. Maybe she's come across something that contains records of body switching magic in it.”

“That's a good idea,” Rachel said. “Isn't she normally in the library or her lab? We could find her there and ask her.”

“It sounds like a plan,” Morcant said. “Come on. Let's move.”

 

* * *

 

The small group went to the library, where as they had said, the document-keeping Lodger Aurelia Cruz was poring over some books. The library wasn't very big, so it was easy to spot her, and in turn it was even easier for her to notice them.

“Why, Miss Aurelia!” Hyde said, walking up to her. “You're just the person we needed to see.”

Aurelia stared up at them, and adjusted her glasses. “Are we on a first name basis now, Dr. Jekyll?”

“Ah...right.” Hyde cleared his throat, and straightened up. “Sorry about that, Miss Cruz. But we do need your help with something, right away.”

Aurelia leaned back in her chair. “Well, I'm kind of busy, but I can always make room when the founder asks me for something.” She then glanced over his shoulder. “And apparently, if all the others are asking for it, too.”

“We just need any records of anything that can induce body switching,” Morcant said from her place in the group. “Can you help us with that?”

Aurelia looked a little surprised, but nodded. “Uh...sure.” She stood up from her chair, and then walked over to the small drawers containing the indexes of the books. “Specific, but ok.”

As she opened the drawers and looked through the indexes, Frankenstein glanced at the collection of books around. “It seems that you've been investing a lot into creating this,” she noted.

“Ah, well, a lot of the books are donations from the Lodgers,” Hyde told her. “Some are even really hard to find. And not all of them are books on mad science – some of them are just, you know, normal science. It does help a bit. But if you ask me, we need more mad science books in here.”

“Yeah, but the problem with that is that a lot of those records of mad science are obscure, in code, or banned,” Aurelia said as she closed the drawer with her chosen index in hand. “I take a lot of pains to find manuscripts, restore them, and put them and a copy of them in this library.” Then she looked up at a shelf. “The life of a mad scientist is hard, but I'm glad to be here.”

Hyde grinned widely, and Rachel looked at him as he walked up to Aurelia again, looking at the shelf as well. “So, what do we have, Miss Cruz?” he asked.

She plucked a book off the shelf, and looked at the cover, before walking over to her table once more, with Hyde in tow again. “We have these records of obscure alchemists in history,” she said, placing the book down on the table. “Of course, the title and content imply that these were actually magic-using troublemakers, but I bet that was just made by the editors to reinforce the idea that mad science is dangerous.”

“And hopefully, not all of the people listed inside are troublemakers,” Lanyon said. “Are they?”

“I find it better not to answer that kind of question,” Aurelia said simply. She opened the book, and then leafed through the pages. “Let's see...” It was only a matter of seconds before she found the right page, and pointed at it.

“There was an anonymous alchemist a hundred years before who, it was claimed, managed to find a way to split the mind from the body through certain chemicals and send the mind into another body. But to do so would also be to place the other person's mind into the first person's body.” She then pointed at a drawing of an old decorative butterfly-shaped brooch. “They placed the formula into this, and now whoever holds this item can make people switch bodies and put them back.”

Aurelia then straightened up, and it was Morcant's turn to stare at the page. Lanyon and Adam stared as well, but only for a moment before Lanyon said, “Well, it seems alchemy can do anything,” he noted. “But it does sound too good to be true.”

“How is it too good to be true?” Aurelia asked, looking at him. “If I recall, Miss Rachel, you came back from a trip into the city with this exact brooch last night.”

Lanyon's eyes widened, while Rachel paled. “Uh – what?” she asked. “I – I mean, Miss Pidgley came back with that?”

“Yeah.” Aurelia nodded. “And you showed it to your sweethearts, too.”

“Sweethearts?” Lanyon asked.

“Oh, don't try to hide it; we all know you, corpse boy, and wolf boy are seeing each other.”

“What–“ Lanyon looked at Rachel and Adam, and true enough, they were both blushing. His mouth fell open.

“Well, that doesn't matter right now,” Creature said, coming forward. “Can you tell us what happened after that?”

“Oh, you don't remember?” Aurelia asked. Then she shrugged. “You three talked about it for a bit, and then went to the kitchen for some privacy. We didn't hear much out of you three after that. Partly because a lot of us didn't want to intrude, and the others that did found the door to the kitchen locked.”

“I see,” Creature said, putting a hand to their chin thoughtfully.

“Well, if that's all you lot need from me, I'll be going back to work,” Aurelia said. Then she looked at Lanyon and Rachel. “Nice looks, by the way.”

Lanyon and Rachel could do little else but nod. “Thanks,” they both said simultaneously.

 

* * *

 

“So, Rachel...you had the pin?” Adam asked once they were back in the office, looking up at her. “And you don't remember that at all?”

“I don't remember anything from last night,” Rachel said.

Adam nodded. “Well, to be honest, neither Mother nor Creature nor I remember either.”

“And neither do I,” Morcant said. “There is something strange at work here.”

“But we got our answer, didn't we?” Lanyon said. “Since Rachel had the pin, Rachel is the culprit!”

“What – you think I'm the one who did this?” Rachel asked, indignant. “Why would I even make people switch bodies? What's more, why would I do that to myself and switch places with _you_?”

“What's so bad about switching places with _me_?” Lanyon asked.

“We are not going to get anywhere if we begin to argue about this,” Morcant said calmly, before Lanyon and Rachel could go any further. “Maybe it's in your house, and we can undo what happened to us.”

“Yeah, I don't think I'd keep anything I thought was personal in the Society,” Rachel said, nodding. “Let's go back to my place.”

From the desk, Hyde watched them talk. He tilted his head, and then looked at the glass cabinets.

“You've been awfully silent, Jekyll,” he said.

He didn't get an immediate response.

“...Jekyll?”

 


	5. Thieving and Talking

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jekyll finds a memory, and the others gather one more clue.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I suppose that our protagonists are allowed one more clue before they set out of the Society.

While Hyde and the others had gone to the library, Jekyll had descended into the depths of their shared mind, into their own library that was comprised of their memories. He looked around, and then moved over to the shelves that held their most recent memories.

“ _I should be able to find something here,”_ Jekyll said to himself. _“I have to make sure that my memories of last night aren't just buried deep into our mind. That might help with our situation.”_

As he went to the shelf, he realized just what he was doing, and sighed. _“I guess I just like to talk to myself, don't I? I don't even have to be Hyde to do it.”_

He scanned the shelves, before waving a hand, and letting a few mind documents float down to him. They floated in midair while he opened every book, unfolded every paper, unrolled every scroll. He skimmed their contents – and then he reached the part just before waking up, the memory of his dream.

“ _Hm, so this is the dream I had before I woke up,”_ he said. _“I guess I better not pay attention to it, though. Looking through this, it's only a dream of butterflies drinking my blood. I don't even know why I woke up in a good mood after dreaming this.”_

He shook his head, and then waved his hand to bring the memory from last night down from the shelf. It was a book – or rather, it seemed like it was supposed to be. He opened it, and found that most of the pages were gone, save for two. Sitting inside the book was a butterfly, sucking away one of the remaining pages, and Jekyll only had a split second's hesitation before swatting at it. It stopped, leaving the page torn in half, and then flew away.

“ _What the...”_ He said, before looking down at the book. _“So that's what's been taking my memories?”_

He then looked at the torn page, and found the words “night to not transform into Hyde” there. He frowned. Of course that would be there. He shook his head, but then laid a hand on the remaining whole page, and he blinked. Then he turned the torn page to see...

A picture of a butterfly brooch.

“You've been awfully silent, Jekyll.”

The words of Hyde echoed through the mind chamber, and Jekyll looked up, letting go of the book cover. He went over to the glowing staircase leading to the conscious world, and walked up it.

“Jekyll?”

 

* * *

 

Hyde only had to wait a few moments, though, before the image of Jekyll manifested into the glass of his cabinets. _“You called?”_ he asked.

“Where were you?” Hyde asked in the smallest whisper, leaning closer to the glass pane. “It's not like you to not pay attention to what I do.”

“ _Thanks for making it seem like I only nag you.”_

“But you do.”

Jekyll huffed, but recalled what he had to say, and said that instead. _“I was in our mind. I looked for our memories of last night.”_

“Any luck?”

“ _Nothing. I found some kind of mind creature devouring the memories. All I got was the fact that I didn't let you out last night – which we know about – and a picture of a brooch.”_

“...Did this brooch happen to be shaped like a butterfly?”

“ _Yes. In fact, I think the mind creature looked like a butterfly, too.”_

Hyde cursed. “Listen. We made a discovery. The possible reason why we switched bodies is–”

“Are you talking to someone, Henry?”

Hyde paused, and then looked up at the others. “Uh...” he said, “I was just monologuing. To myself.”

“I'd think that's more of a Hyde thing to do,” Rachel said. Then she shrugged. “Well, I guess if you're around someone long enough, you tend to pick up their traits.”

Hyde didn't miss how Lanyon frowned at the suggestion, and snickered. “I suppose so,” he said, standing up. “Well, are we going to Miss Rachel's house or not?”

Before anyone could answer, a knock sounded on the door. They all looked up, and Hyde, a bit annoyed, said, “Come in.”

The door opened, and in peeked Christopher Archer, another one of the Lodgers. He looked a little sheepish as he addressed them. “Uh, hey,” he said. “Aurelia told me that you guys were looking for something about switching bodies and what not?”

“Yes, yes, what of it?” Hyde asked, standing up.

“Aurelia also said you were interested in some brooch,” Archer said. “Well, the truth of the matter is, I, uh...found out it was stolen.”

“Stolen?” Morcant asked. “What do you mean it was stolen?”

Archer opened the door a bit wider, and then continued, “I know Miss Rachel had it, but the thing is, I heard last night that it had been stolen from the Blackfog Bazaar.”

“Blackfog?” Now Hyde's interest was piqued. “What happened?”

Archer froze. “Oh, I shouldn't have said that, I know how much you don't like talking about Blackfog.”

Hyde realized that Archer was talking to Jekyll, not Hyde. “That's just blown out of proportion, I never said you couldn't talk about it,” he said, waving a hand. “What about it?”

Archer put his hands together, his eyes moving up to the ceiling as he tried to recall. “Yeah, I heard there was this person who stole it from someone in Blackfog. Some people say it was a member of the Forty Elephants who did it, others say it was a common thief.” He then laughed. “Some of the Lodgers think it's Hyde, but that's kind of laughable. He couldn't nick anything like that even if he tried.”

“Right, right,” Hyde said. The annoyance was back. “Anything else you have to say?”

“Well, we just can't piece together how it ended up in Miss Rachel's possession in the first place,” Archer said. He looked at Lanyon. “Do you remember?”

Lanyon shook his head. “I...don't.”

“No? Well, alright,” Archer said. “But when I heard that it was stolen, I tipped the person off about it being with Rachel. They must have gone after her...and that's that on that.” He then squinted. “You seriously don't remember a thing, Rachel? About that person coming to your house? Anything from last night?”

Lanyon shook his head. Rachel then looked at Archer. “Believe me, if I – _she_ knew anything about that, she wouldn't have asked about it.”

“Right, right,” Archer said, nodding. “But if you're looking for a brooch, then why were you asking about body switching...?” He stared at Lanyon and Rachel for a moment, before his mouth fell open. “You two are–!“

“Shush!” Rachel said, coming over to Archer and shoving a finger against his lips. “No one has to know about that!”

“Oh man, that's rich, who would have thought?” Archer said, laughing even as Rachel removed her finger from his mouth.

“That's what we're trying to figure out, Mr. Archer, now keep it to yourself. We need to be able to discuss this in secret,” Lanyon said.

“Sure, don't worry about it!” he said, giving them a thumbs-up. “You can count on me, honorable founder!” And with that, he waved. “If that's all that you needed, I'll be on my way.” Then he left the group, and closed the door behind him.

“...He's not going to be able to keep that a secret, is he?” Rachel asked.

“The door was open, what were you expecting? Someone else must have heard it by now,” Hyde pointed out.

“Uh, right,” Adam said, narrowing his eyes at Hyde. Then he looked at the others. “So we're not going to Rachel's house after all?”

“No,” Lanyon said bluntly. “Now this means practically anyone could have the brooch, and we'd never get to it.”

Rachel had a thoughtful look on her face as she listened to their conversation, and then spoke. “Actually...”

The others looked at her as she continued, “I might know someone.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disappointingly, this is the chapter where it's shown that absolutely nothing has happened to the Lodgers. If it were just the usual Society shenanigans (and it probably should have been) then I'd be able to make as many body swaps as I wanted. But the story wasn't intended to work that way, and I would just exhaust myself with all the swaps. Not to mention, it wouldn't have that air of secrecy and pretending to be someone else if the Lodgers got in on the body swaps too. They're just too big gossips for those common tropes to work, and I say that as a Lodgers enthusiast.


	6. Something Only I Know

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rachel tells Hyde about something, and Lanyon is on edge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm most nervous about this part in the story, and possibly for very good reason. This does probably make sense somehow, but if anyone has any complaints, feel free to take it up with me.

“You said we didn't have to go to Rachel's house, right?” Hyde asked.

“Yes,” Lanyon nodded.

He extended a hand. “So...what are we doing in Rachel's house anyway?”

True enough, everyone in their little group was looking around Rachel's house, looking around the place. Rachel looked at them, while she spoke.

“We have to check if the brooch really isn't there; it's better safe than sorry,” Rachel told him. “Besides, it could give us a place to stay without the Lodgers going down our throats asking for an explanation.”

“That makes sense,” Hyde said, crossing his arms. “But I don't see why all of us are here.”

“We have to stay in one place, just in case we recover the brooch,” Lanyon said. “That way, returning back to normal will be a piece of cake.”

“What about Jasper?” Hyde asked. “I find it might be a bit inconvenient that we'd go back to the woods outside Lausanne just to find him running around in Morcant's body.”

“I fear that's what it may come to if we can't switch him and Morcant from a distance,” Lanyon said. “But since the initial switch did happen from a distance, I feel inclined to think it just might work, at least for that case alone.”

Rachel shrugged, looking back at them. “Besides, you guys need a private place to stay while I go talk to my connection.”

Hyde blinked. “Connection?”

“Yeah, connection.” Rachel then turned to Lanyon. “Can you leave Henry and I alone for a bit?”

Lanyon stared at the two of them for a moment, before nodding. “Sure,” he said, before leaving to probably go talk to someone.

“...Hm,” Hyde said. “So, what did you want to talk–?”

“You're not Henry Jekyll.”

He paused. “...What?”

“You heard me, you're not Henry Jekyll,” she said, talking in a whisper. “I know Henry. Henry doesn't talk or act the way that you do. He's more proper. You're more like someone else I know.”

“Someone else...?” Hyde then tried to laugh. “You've got it wrong. I am–”

“Don't, Edward.” Rachel said. “Don't. I know you are Edward Hyde.”

His lips parted, and then he looked down. “...Well, as it turns out, I'm not that great an actor,” he said, a tad flippantly.

Rachel took his hands. “Why didn't you tell us you weren't Jekyll before?”

Hyde looked down at their hands, and then up at her. It would have been strange enough if Rachel were doing this in her own body, but no, she had to be in Lanyon's. That was even more weird. Not to mention, he was all too familiar with Lanyon's worried face, and that bothered him more.

“I don't have to tell you everything,” he said, looking back up at her. “And besides, I can handle being Jekyll on my own.”

“Like hell you can; you just admitted that you were a terrible actor,” Rachel pointed out. “If you had come forward, we could have helped you.”

“I don't need help, alright?” he said. “When we get the brooch this whole thing will be over. I'll be fine with or without your help. And I prefer without.”

Rachel's face fell. She looked down at their hands as well. “...If you say so,” she said. Then she shook her head, and then looked back up at Hyde. “But where's Henry?” she asked. “If you two have swapped bodies, why hasn't he come to the Society?”

“I...” He realized he didn't have a good answer to that. But he had to come up with _something_. “He's probably doing an investigation of his own. You know how he is; he doesn't like asking for help. He'd prefer to take everything on himself.”

Rachel nodded. “...I guess you two are alike there, at least.”

Hyde didn't have anything to add to that.

 

* * *

 

“Are you trying to listen to them?”

Lanyon turned to Morcant, who was watching him, her hand on her hip. She eyed him as she walked up to him, and he shook his head. “I wasn't trying to listen. I was just...glancing over my shoulder at a fly.”

Morcant laughed. “You are a terrible liar.”

Lanyon frowned. “I am not.”

“I know you are a terrible liar, because I know you are concerned about Henry,” she said. “And you have every right to be, I'm afraid.”

“Every right to–“ Lanyon clenched his hands into fists. “I am not obsessing over Henry, and I am definitely not as concerned about him as you think I am.”

“If you think it would be wise for you to hide your feelings this way, then so be it,” she sighed. “But I have to warn you. Henry seems like the type to make a lot of bad decisions. The last thing he needs is to make any more of them because of someone else.”

“If you think Henry is going to make a bad decision because of me–”

“We didn't find anything,” Frankenstein said, interrupting Lanyon's train of thought. She, Creature, and Adam came back, with her looking none too comfortable thanks to the low ceiling. “I think it would be wise to ask for Miss Rachel's connections now.”

Rachel looked up at them, and stood up. “It will be, don't worry,” she said. “My sister-in-law knows her stuff.” Then she looked at Lanyon. “But I'm going to need your help on this, Robert.”

Lanyon turned towards her. “Well, I feared I would have to pretend to be you, but it seems this was bound to happen.” He then put his hands together. “But it would appear that I have to ask you to pretend to be me as well.”

Rachel froze. “Wait, what?”

“Because of all the excitement of this morning, it completely slipped my mind that Henry and I have dinner with the Royal Society again tonight. A lot of important people are going to be there, and–” He noticed the look on Rachel's face. “I'm not putting any pressure on you, am I?”

Rachel looked pale and sweaty. “N-no,” she denied.

Lanyon stared at her. “Riiiiiight,” he said. “Well, you might not have to do this. I can just go to your connection right away and hopefully things will go smoothly enough that we can switch back before dinner.”

“Weeeeeeell...” Rachel twiddled her fingers together. “The problem is, my sister-in-law is usually more receptive of visitors at night. The daytime brings problems for her sort of people.”

“And what _are_ her sort of people, exactly?”

“I-I can't tell you!”

Lanyon blinked, and then slapped his hand against his forehead. “Oh, God, you really are going to have to pose as me,” he said.

“Well, what's so wrong with that?” Rachel asked. “You think I can't play the part of a privileged rich boy like you? As if it's hard!”

Lanyon took offense to that, and he yelled back, “Well, then I suppose it won't be hard to play the part of a scullery maid who apparently has the time to entertain two men!”

Rachel wasn't even able to retort before Adam came forward and grabbed Lanyon by the collar of the dress and slammed him against the wall.

“Say that again about her, I dare you,” he threatened. “That may be Rachel's body you're in, but if you insult her I will have no qualms leaving a bruise to get my point across.”

Lanyon looked up at Rachel. She didn't look like she was even going to tell Adam to put him down. Instead, she wore an angry, insulted face that Lanyon was almost surprised to see on his own body.

“ _Hyde, you have to step in,”_ Jekyll told Hyde.

“Are you kidding?” Hyde asked in a whisper. “Maybe if no one comes to Lanyon's rescue, he might actually learn something.”

The air was tense, and Hyde was right. No one came to Lanyon's rescue. Adam held him against the wall for a few seconds, before blowing a lock of hair out of his face again, and then dropping Lanyon down to the floor. He landed a bit roughly, and Adam turned and walked away.

Lanyon looked up at all of them, and hissed, before getting up. “If that's how you all want it,” he said. “I can see when I'm not welcome.”

“We're not saying you aren't welcome, just refrain from insulting people,” Morcant told him.

He straightened up, and then looked straight at her. “What else do you call it when no one stands up for you?”

“The time when you're being a sack of shit,” Hyde muttered.

“ _Hyde!”_ Jekyll exclaimed.

Lanyon looked at him, and his expression turned to one of seething. But he didn't say another word.

“That's enough,” Morcant said calmly. “It would benefit us all if we didn't spend the majority of the day at each other's throats.”

The others seemed to listen, but none of them looked apologetic. Creature put a hand on Adam's shoulder, and Rachel stepped back to stand beside Hyde.

Lanyon rubbed at his arm, and then looked at Rachel again. “Just fix yourself up,” he commented tiredly. “And for the love of God, shave your face.” Then he made for the door and walked outside.

“Hmph.” Rachel turned away from the door and crossed her arms.

“ _That was uncalled for, Hyde,”_ Jekyll said.

“I didn't say it to his face,” Hyde told him.

“ _He might have heard it.”_

“He might not have.”

“ _We have to do something.”_

“No, we don't.” Hyde slouched a little more in his seat. “We don't.”

Jekyll tried to say something, but gave up on it.

Well, Hyde supposed that was fair. He wasn't the one in control of the body.

 

* * *

 

Lanyon went out of Rachel's flat and stood out on the street. He didn't see a lot of people walking about, and he didn't know whether to be comforted by that or not.

He stamped his foot against the pavement, and felt the impact shoot up his leg. Then he inhaled deeply, and exhaled.

Well, Morcant was right. They shouldn't have been at each other's throats in the first place. But he was mad that she had to be right, he was mad that things had to be so difficult right now, there was a chance that they'd be stuck like this...

He clenched his hand into a fist, and then looked down at a puddle of water in the pavement. It was undisturbed, so he could see his reflection in it. But he only saw Rachel.

_He saw her, in the rain that was pouring down onto the street. He saw her looking right at him, with glowing eyes and the butterfly brooch pinned over her chest._

Lanyon blinked, and just like that the flashback was gone. But the memory of that remained.

“What the hell?” he asked quietly, holding his head. He tried to will it back into his conscious, but nothing happened as he continued to stare down at the puddle.

All he saw was Rachel.

 


	7. Familiarity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adam discusses the possibility of him remembering something, and Lanyon and Rachel share a moment...somehow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't get to update yesterday because of internet troubles. You know how it is.

“I just don't get it, Mother; when I looked at the picture of that brooch, I thought it looked familiar.”

“Well, why wouldn't it?” Frankenstein said. “You saw it last night, if Miss Cruz was right.”

Adam shook his head. “No, I don't remember anything from last night still. But I get the feeling I've seen the brooch...even further, in the past.”

“In the past?”

He paused for a moment, and then said, “Before we came to the Society.”

“That's impossible,” Morcant said, and Adam looked up at her. “You couldn't have seen it.”

“Well, none of us have seen it before; how can you say that?” Frankenstein asked.

Morcant pursed her lips together. “I actually have seen it in the past, as well.”

“And you did not tell us?” Frankenstein said.

“I contemplated on it first,” Morcant told her. “I thought that it might have to do with why I'm here with you all. It's the only possible explanation.” She then turned to Adam. “But what say you? Where did you see the brooch?”

Adam put his hands together, and tried to concentrate. “I think I saw it...”

The image of a tree came to him, with something shining inside a hole in the tree. Then he saw his hand reach for what was inside.

He swallowed. “It was in the woods.”

Morcant's expression turned intense. “When was this?”

“It was sometime before we came to the Society for Arcane Sciences,” he said. “But not too long before.”

She nodded, and then turned away. Frankenstein and Creature then looked at Adam.

“How come we do not remember this?” Creature asked.

“I just thought it was something lost in the woods, so I did not tell you,” Adam said. “I didn't know it was a magical artifact or anything of the sort.”

Frankenstein crossed her arms. “But if it was in your possession before, then why didn't it do anything to us before? And how come it ended up at Blackfog?”

Adam looked down. “I do not know the first. But the second...I might have some idea."

He didn't get to continue this train of thought, however. The door to Rachel's flat opened, and Lanyon came back inside. Everyone in the room looked at him, but Rachel's gaze in particular lingered only for a second before she turned away again.

Lanyon saw this, and frowned. He then walked over to Rachel, and wasn't surprised to see her not look up at him.

“Rachel, look,” he said. “What I said was uncalled for. Things must have gotten out of hand in the heat of the moment.”

“Boy, I'll say,” she said coldly.

“But if we're going to get through this, I realized that we have to work together,” he continued. “Since we don't have any way of switching back before sunset, you have to take my place and I have to take yours. And you have no idea how to act like I do, and I have no idea how to act like you do. So we should teach each other the ropes, don't you think?”

Rachel inhaled, and then exhaled. Then she turned back around towards him.

“If you insult me one more time, Adam won't be the one leaving bruises on you,” she said.

“Of course,” he replied. “I'll see to it that something like that doesn't happen again.”

She nodded. “Alright. What's the first thing I need to learn?”

He tried to stifle a chuckle, and failed. “Well, the first thing you need to do is fix yourself up. I see you still haven't done so. In which case, we need to procure a razor.”

And that was what he said.

But that was not what he thought.

He couldn't get what he had seen out of his head. But he had to see what was going on with her. And sometimes, the best way to do that is to get close to the one you suspect something from.

 

* * *

 

“Hm,” Lanyon said, as he looked Rachel's now shaven face over in the bathroom, while the water in the sink was running. “I would say you've done a pretty good job.”

“That's only because you were instructing me every five seconds on how not to cut myself,” Rachel deadpanned.

“And haven't I done a marvelous job of it?” he said. “Now, what you're wearing is by no means appropriate for a dinner, but we still have time in the day to get you back to my house and to change you up.” He then sniffed. “And have you take a bath, I fear.”

Rachel blushed. “A-A bath?” she stuttered. “No way, I couldn't!”

“With the stress we've been under all morning, I would say it's the perfect time to take a bath,” he said. “I don't like it as much as you do. But everything has to be perfect when it comes to these kinds of occasions.”

“Right,” she said, still a tad nervously. “But I still don't want you looking at my body.”

“Relax, I wouldn't dream of it,” Lanyon said, waving a hand. “I've still got time to teach you what to do and how to do it, at least convincingly enough so you can pass as me for one night.”

“So I'm guessing you have to learn what kind of fork to use, what to say, possibly how to dance...” She rubbed at her arm, her voice dropping to a mumble.

“It's not so complicated; I can familiarize you with proper dinner etiquette the way I taught Henry.”

“The way you taught Henry?”

Lanyon folded his arms. “Believe it or not, Henry wasn't always the proper gentleman you know. He used to be quite a shy, naïve boy when we met at university, always burying himself in his studies and whatnot. But he seemed enamored by the world which I had been born into, and so I taught him everything I know.”

“So his sparkly attitude is all thanks to you?” she asked.

“Yes. Precisely.” A pause. “Except somehow, I don't know where he gets the sparkles.”

Rachel laughed a bit, and looked down for a moment, before looking back up at him. “Alright. I'm up for it.”

“Very good.” Lanyon said. “And I assume you don't have anything to teach me.”

“Hmmmmm...” Rachel pretended to think about it, before telling him, “Well, lose the accent, at least. You're going to the slums of London, you don't need people thinking you're an upperclass lady. Though I'll let the dress slide for now.”

“The slums of London?” Lanyon asked. “Rachel, who exactly is your sister-in-law?”

She grinned. “I think it'll be better if you find out when you get there.”

Lanyon narrowed his eyes. “If this is a trick...”

“It's not!” she said. “Just act natural. Try doing the opposite of what I've seen posh people do.”

“Which is?”

“Be earnest. The people in the slums don't care about image, they've got barely anything to lose. And besides, in that part of the city, a lot of people don't know me well enough. They won't be concerned about my personality as long as I'm honest and I don't have an upperclass accent.”

Honest. Right. Lanyon didn't know what to make of that, but he let it slide. “Alright...so that means I'm teaching you not to be earnest.” He then allowed himself a smile. “How...apt.”

He didn't think it was apt at all, but Rachel giggled at that, and Lanyon knew he had her guard down once again. That was the best he could do for now.

 

* * *

 

“Back to what you were saying, Adam. You said you knew how the brooch ended up at Blackfog.”

“Yes, that. I'm pretty sure I sold it to someone.”

“You sold it?”

“That's where you got that money?”

“Well, yes. I sold it to someone on the ship we were stowing away in, to Britain. They must have been traveling with Blackfog. I remember some very odd-looking people travelling with them.”

“Well, then, we have our answer as to how it ended up there.”

“But how did it end up in a tree in the first place?”

“...”

“Morcant, was it? How did it end up there?”

“I suppose I must tell you.”

 


	8. Back When It All Began

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Morcant and Adam go back to when they saw the butterfly brooch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yep, we interrupt this broadcast to bring you a flashback chapter!
> 
> Also, this exploits the fact that Bleeding Heart takes place within Switzerland...where I assume the Frankensteins were living at the time. Bleeding Heart really does take place there, believe me!
> 
> And the implication that the Frankensteins are just living under society's nose until Frankie gets ill is too fun to resist.
> 
> Now behold my poor fight scene-writing skills!

Morcant had just been a young werewolf when it all began. She had been prowling about the woods that were her home in the daytime, when she saw someone wandering about. Naturally, she had to find out what they were doing in a forest full of monsters. So she went after them from a distance, to make sure that what they were doing would not harm the beings that lived there.

It was just her luck, then, that this person was out to cause trouble.

She saw it herself, when she saw this person shooting a deer. She flinched at the sound of the gunshot, but would have chalked it up to them just hunting for sport when she saw them pull out a vial and walk up to the dying deer.

She then watched carefully as this person poured the contents of the vial into the deer's mouth. The deer breathed heavily for a moment, before the gunshot wound healed. A few moments later, however, much to her shock, the deer's eyes began to glow, and it grew extra legs. She watched as the person then let the deer trot away (with some difficulty).

It was at this point that she had to come out of hiding. She walked forward, and that was when the person saw her.

“What are you doing here?” she asked. “What did you do to that deer?”

“I'm carrying out my experiments,” he said. “If the formula works on animals, then it must work on humans too.”

“What kind of formula are you making?” she asked, still on her guard. Yet she still felt as if she had to gain more information.

“A formula to enhance the capabilities of man,” the person told her. “To give them the qualities that people deem monstrous, to give them...power.”

“So power is what you seek,” Morcant noted. She then folded her arms. “In which case, leave this forest now.”

The person frowned, but then turned away. “Alright. You must have your own power...but I will best it.”

With a swish of his cape, the person then left the forest. Morcant didn't feel the slightest bit worried about him, though. She thought that he wouldn't be successful in his endeavors; the power-hungry did tend to fail dramatically, so to speak.

 

* * *

 

But that wasn't the last that she saw of him after all.

It was a few years later, when she saw that person again. Only this time, it was night, and she saw his body in the arms of a bigger person whose eyes were glowing, and who was stomping around the forest. She didn't think it had been related to the incident when they first met, at first. But then she heard the words coming out of the bigger person's mouth.

“So you're the person who told me to leave this forest!” he said. “I suspected you had your own power; well, look at me now! I've managed to create a person whose power exceeds that of my own body, and I've switched places with him!”

“Switched places with him?” Morcant asked. She then growled. “I don't know what you've done with this human, but abandon your quest for power and leave the forest!”

“Never! I've come too far to quit!” he said, placing his original body down on the ground. Morcant looked at it for a moment, and saw a butterfly brooch pinned to his shirt. She then looked up back up at the new body.

“How about this, then?” she asked. “I will show you my own power, and if I win, you will leave the forest and return to your own body.”

“And if _I_ win, I will be able to wreak havoc on whatever I please!” the man said.

Morcant steadied herself. “So be it.”

She transformed into her werewolf form as quickly as she could, and thus began her fight with the man.

Details must be spared about how brutal the fight was, as well as about what happened, who punched who and who bit who. But in the end, Morcant found herself weakened by the blows of the man, and she fell to the ground, tired and beaten.

“It looks like I have won over you, after all, werewolf!” he said, stomping over to her while she pushed herself up and growled at him. “Growling will do you no good.” He then raised his fists. “Now, let me end this!”

The brooch on the man's original body began to glow a bit, and Morcant's eyes fell on it. She suddenly realized that there was a magical energy coming from it, and her will to stop the man overcame her weak body. She raced over to it just as his fists came down onto the place where she had laid, and he could barely do anything before she snatched the brooch from the body's chest.

“Wait! No!” he said, but she only turned towards him, the brooch in her mouth. It glowed more than ever now, and she looked down at it, before doing the only thing she could think of doing.

She bit into it, causing it to crack.

A big burst of energy erupted from the brooch, and Morcant dropped it, being pushed back. She managed to regain her footing, but only for a second before she couldn't take it anymore, and laid herself down.

She looked up, and saw both bodies lying prone on the ground, with a fuzzy, translucent cloud floating above them. She squinted. Was that...?

“ _I cannot return to my old body!”_   the cloud said. _“I must find power...I must find it!”_

The cloud hovered over the brooch, which still glowed feebly in spite of the crack in its design. The cloud began to be sucked into the crack, and went inside until there was nothing left. Then the cloud was gone – and so was the crack in the brooch.

Morcant stared at it, and then laid her head down onto the ground.

She came to quite a while later, and had transformed back into her human form by then. She found the brooch, picked it up, and then decided to hide it away, far from the dwellings of people nearby.

The bodies stayed where they were.

 

* * *

 

A century later, there was to be another large being trudging through the woods. Only this being measured about twice a normal man's height, and he was not alone.

“Are you sure it's safe to be exploring these woods?” Adam asked Frankenstein, while Creature walked in front of them, drawing a map of the woods. “It could be inhabited by dangerous creatures.”

Frankenstein only laughed. “So are many of the other forests in the world!” she said. “Supernatural creatures exist everywhere, the best we can do is be prepared for them.” She then looked up at Creature. “You have all the supplies in your bag, right?”

“Of course I do,” Creature said, not looking up from his map. “I just hope we're not going in circles.”

Adam listened to the two of them talk, and then looked around at the forest around them. There were the usual bug sounds, as well as birds chirping overhead. He was about to look back in front of him when something caught his eye, to his left.

It was something shining, inside a tree. He stared at it for a bit, before walking closer to the tree, and then looking inside.

Inside the tree was a brooch, in the shape of a butterfly.

“ _Take me back...”_

“What...?” Adam asked. He reached inside, and then pulled it out. By all means, it seemed very ordinary. He turned it over in his hand.

“Adam?"

“Huh?” He turned back to the path in front of him. “Coming, Creature!”

And before he knew it, he had pocketed the item, and now ran forward to join his family.

 


	9. Neither Respectable Nor A Gentleman

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is how they prepare for the big night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't have a lot to say in this part, so have at it!

“Alright, Rachel and I are off to your house now to get her a dinner suit,” Hyde said as he walked out with Rachel. “You have the address for her sister-in-law's place, right?”

“Right,” Lanyon said, holding up a piece of paper.

“Just do as I told you, and follow that address, as well as the code I wrote below it,” Rachel said. “They're sure to let you in after they hear it.”

“Rachel, who exactly is your sister-in-law? You make it sound as if she's running a secret society.”

Rachel shrugged. “Something like that.”

Lanyon inhaled, and then exhaled. “Well,” he told her, “remember what I told you about the forks.”

“And try to act happy when you meet my sister-in-law.”

“And you have to remain for a while after the meal.”

“And lose the accent.”

“And don't squeal.”

“And try not to use your dry humor so much.”

Hyde put a hand on his hip. “I guess you two aren't done yet, after all.”

Lanyon and Rachel both looked at him, and then cleared their throats. “No, we're done,” she said. “Just needed some reminding, that's all.”

“Alright, so off to the dinner we go,” Hyde said, while Rachel got into a cab. He was about to get in as well, when Lanyon grabbed his jacket sleeve.

“Wait.”

Hyde looked back at him. “...What?”

“Henry,” Lanyon said in a whisper, “A memory came to me. I suspect it's from last night.”

“A memory from last night?” he asked.

He nodded. “Rachel might have used the brooch's powers last night. Be careful around her.”

Hyde stared at him for a little while, before pulling his arm back, and then going into the carriage with Rachel. Then the door closed, and Lanyon was left staring after the carriage as it left. He sighed, and then looked down at the paper he was holding. There was an address written on the top of the paper, followed by a word which was likely the code that Rachel was talking about.

And below it, the note: _“Bring Morcant and Creature with you. My sister-in-law Lucy knows about Jasper, Adam, and I. I sent a picture to her once, even though neither Jasper nor Adam have met Lucy yet. And you could use company that she recognizes.”_

Lanyon read it over, and then looked up. “Not the ideal team,” he muttered.

“Well?” Morcant asked, and Lanyon looked up at her – she was looking over his shoulder. Immediately, he closed the paper. Hopefully she hadn't seen its contents. And if she were annoyed at that, she didn't show it. “What do we do?”

He thought for a moment.

“Rachel said you and Creature have to come with me,” he said. “But you have to wait while I talk to Rachel's sister alone.”

 

* * *

 

“ _Robert had a memory from last night.”_

“So do we, even though most of it is gone,” Hyde told Jekyll.

Jekyll appeared in his shadow. _“That means there's a chance that we can recover what memories we lost! And then we can figure out what made us this way.”_

“Hm.” Hyde crossed his legs as he looked out the window. They were in Lanyon's house now, and Rachel was busy changing in his bedroom. Hyde, meanwhile, was waiting outside, and went on to Jekyll, “But he had a memory about Rachel in particular, and he told us to be careful around her. Don't you think that's blowing it out of proportion?”

“ _I think what he saw could have been concerning enough.”_

“He's just acting out to be shitty towards Rachel.”

“ _...I take it you're concerned yourself about Rachel?”_

Hyde blushed, and looked at his shadow. “Shut up!” he hissed. “I just think he's jumping to conclusions.”

“Are you talking to someone out there, Edward?”

Hyde turned towards the door. “I'm not talking to anyone!” he said.

“Well, you sounded like you were talking to someone.”

“What, you think I'm delusional or something?”

“Just a bit strange.” Rachel then went on, “But actually, I need you to get in here. There's something I'm having a little difficulty with.”

Hyde didn't exactly feel in the mood to help Rachel with whatever thing she needed help with, but something compelled him to open the door and just hope that it wouldn't be weird.

When he looked inside the room, he saw Rachel in front of a mirror, frowning at her reflection. A second later, she turned towards him, and he saw what was wrong – her tie was haphazardly done.

“Help,” she said.

Hyde huffed, and then walked towards her. “No wonder you made Lanyon look so messed up,” he said. “Then again, I can't blame you. You don't have to wear such restraining ties.”

“Then why do you wear them?” Rachel asked.

Hyde's face was unreadable. “Good question.” He then shrugged, and reached forward. “But if I had to answer, I'd say a lot of people like a well-dressed man.”

“I'm sure that's why you wear a cape with holes in it.”

“You just don't understand fashion the way it should be understood.”

She just gave him a smile as he untied her tie, and then re-tied it properly. They stood in silence for a minute, before Hyde finished, and then smoothed it over.

“There,” he said. “Now we can go pretend to be respectable gentlemen together.”

Rachel smiled wider. “Yeah.” Then she looked into the mirror. “Do you think I can pull it off? I mean, I'm a little worried about you–”

“Very funny.”

“–but I've never been respectable or a gentleman.” She took a deep breath. “I hope we don't make Henry and Robert look bad.”

“Believe me, if Lanyon doesn't do the things you told him to, making him and Jekyll look bad tonight will be the least of our worries. So I wouldn't place too much pressure on us.”

Rachel nodded. “I guess so.”

In the reflection of the mirror, she saw someone else stand in the doorway, and they both turned around to see Lisa standing there.

“You two boys ready to go?” she asked. “Or are you going to keep gazing lovingly into each other's eyes?”

“Gaze lovingly?” Rachel asked.

“It's just something she says,” Hyde said. Then he looked at Lisa. “We'll meet you downstairs.”

Lisa nodded. “Sure, sure,” she said as she walked away.

“Just something she says?” Rachel asked.

“Yeah, just something about Jekyll and Lanyon. She's convinced they have an attraction or something.”

“...But you've never met Lisa.”

The gears in Hyde's mind screeched to a halt. “Uh...” he said. “...Jekyll tells me all about it. Kind of rants a bit to me, you know?”

“I didn't know Henry ranted to you about things,” Rachel said. “You're not the type to be a confidant.”

“Oh, as it turns out, the truth might surprise you,” he said. Then he looked at her. “Shall we?”

 


	10. An Audience With The Queen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Exactly what the title says.
> 
> Well, not really, but yknow.
> 
> Lanyon goes to see Rachel's sister.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've gone long enough without updating this thing, haven't I?
> 
> Some of the characters here might be quite OOC, so if you find anything weird, just let me know! No guarantees that it'll be fixed, though.

“Thank you for telling me that this body I have belongs to a werewolf,” Morcant said.

“I suppose it's only fair,” Lanyon said, looking at her. Jasper's body had now reverted to its werewolf form, but Morcant seemed relatively at ease. Of course. “Though it must be different from the form you're used to.”

“Definitely,” she said. “Did Henry give the boy a wolfsbane potion?”

“Wolfs...bane?”

Morcant shook her head. “I guess I'll have to ask him when we meet him again.”

Lanyon turned away, and crossed his arms. “Right.”

He couldn't believe he was doing this, travelling with Morcant and the Creature to Lucy's address. Frankenstein and Adam had stayed at Rachel's flat, and Lanyon knew he didn't need more voices to distract him from his thoughts. But he just hoped Creature would talk, so that he wouldn't have to talk to Morcant.

He didn't want to get close to Morcant. He didn't know why, but he just didn't. The memory of her and Jekyll talking on and on about alchemy and other things he didn't know kept repeating itself in his mind.

“Dr. Lanyon.”

Lanyon nearly jumped. He might have hoped Creature would speak, but he had been silent for so long; he didn't expect him to speak so suddenly. He stopped, and then looked at him. “What?”

“I get the feeling that we're being watched,” Creature said.

“Watched?” Lanyon asked, glancing around nervously.

Morcant's ears twitched, and she nodded. “There are a lot of people sneaking about. Watch your backs.”

“Well,” Lanyon said. “I know it's not much further now, so we should keep moving and–”

He barely finished before someone jumped down from the rooftop behind him, and he turned around to see a woman holding up a pistol. Just as she did so, a bunch of other women, similarly armed, jumped down from the surrounding rooftops, and these women soon trapped them in a circle.

“What brings you three here?” the first woman asked. “You didn't bring any peelers, did you?”

“Peelers?” Lanyon repeated.

“The police,” Creature told him.

Lanyon turned back to the women. “N-No, we didn't bring any police,” he said, a little more nervously than he intended.

“D'you know yer treading where you shouldn't?” another woman asked, pointing a knife at Lanyon.

He gulped. “We're trying to find someone here–”

“Wait, Penelope,” the first woman said. She lowered her pistol just the tiniest bit. “Do you have a code, or something?”

“I-I do!” Lanyon tried to recall it in spite of his panic. “Pidgley. The code is Pidgley.”

Almost immediately, the first woman's face turned to one of shock, and she completely lowered her pistol. “Oh goodness, are you Queen Lucy's sister? I'm so sorry!”

His face, in turn, turned to a dumbfounded one. “I'm sorry, _Queen Lucy_?”

“I almost didn't make it out!” a third woman said, coming forward. “It is kind of dark, and you had a new look. We couldn't tell.” She then tried to smile. “We take it you're here to see the Queen?”

“Uh...yes,” Lanyon tried. “Is that the only Lucy you have?”

The third woman laughed. “Oh, charming as ever. Come on. Let's get you to the Queen, Rachel.”

“Excuse me,” Penelope said, still pointing her knife at Creature and Morcant, “but who are these others and what should we do with them?”

“Oh, them! They're...” Lanyon struggled a bit, before spitting out, “...they're my lovers. Yes. And they stay with me.”

If the women noticed his strained demeanor, they didn't point it out. Instead, Penelope just put her knife away, huffing. “I never get to cut anyone up,” she said.

“Why, that's called assault, and if you do that then they'll only be able to place another charge on your head if they catch you,” the third woman said.

Penelope laughed. “Oh, Mattie, why'd you think I'd ever get caught?”

Lanyon looked at the women around them as Mattie led them to their destination, and he figured out just now why Rachel had recommended Lucy to them.

She and these other women were members of the Forty Elephants.

 

* * *

 

True to Lanyon's instructions, Morcant and Creature stayed outside the room where he was going to meet with Lucy. But, as he stood in this room full of stolen treasures, he felt that Rachel was probably right about him needing the company. Seeing Lucy right there, in front of him, unsettled him more than he'd care to admit. But she was smiling at him, and within moments, had rushed forward and lifted him into the air.

“Thank God, Rachel!” she said joyfully, with a hint of relief. “I was so worried about you!”

“W-Worried about me?” Lanyon said, squirming a bit. “Uh – Lucy – put me down, p-please!”

“Oh – sorry.” She put him down just as quickly as she had picked him up, and then grinned gently at him. “It's just that I was so concerned about you after last night. I sent my girls to come find you in that Society you work for, but you weren't in the kitchen, and then your house, but it was full of people so they couldn't go to you – but that doesn't matter now!” She pulled him into a tight hug. “You're alright!”

Lanyon squirmed again, and after some struggling, managed to push Lucy away. “Er, sorry, I'm not in the mood for hugs right now,” he said.

“...Oh.” Lucy released him, her smile falling a bit. That made Lanyon realize that that probably wasn't the correct thing to say. He cleared his throat, and then he looked up at her.

“I'm here on some serious business. You say you were concerned about me after last night?”

“Yes, last night.” Lucy tilted her head. “You don't remember?”

He shook his head. “No.” He looked up at her. “Could you tell me about what happened last night?”

Lucy sighed. “That's the thing. I don't remember a lot either.”

His mouth fell open. “Are-are you serious? You don't remember?”

“I don't remember a lot, and it's bothering me quite a bit,” Lucy said, her tone turning serious. “I 'ent normally a superstitious woman, even in this world full of magic and odd creatures. But I'm the only one among my girls who doesn't remember a thing about last night.”

Lanyon looked down. Well, that was one lead down. But a thought came to him, and he looked back up at her. “Well, haven't you asked 'your girls' about what happened last night?”

“As a matter of fact, I did,” Lucy said. “They told me that I had stolen something from the Blackfog Bazaar. A brooch of some sort.” She then held her head. “It just bothers me that I can't remember it myself.”

Lanyon put his hands together. “Right.” His brows creased. “So you don't remember anything weird happening to Rach – er, me?”

She gave him a weird look. “...Well,” she said, “That's the thing I wanted to talk to you about. Why I was so worried. 'Cause I remember _that_ , at least.”

Lanyon nodded, and then pulled up a chair (which no doubt had belonged to someone else at some point in time) before sitting down in it, putting his hands on his lap. “Go on,” he said.

Lucy gave him another weird look. “Rach, you're acting a little...posh.” She narrowed her eyes. “I get the feeling you aren't entirely alright.”

He realized his mistake again, and then waved a hand. “What? No, me? Psh,” he said. He then adjusted his seating (with some difficulty) so that he was now sitting quite improperly in the chair, with his legs over the armrest. Then he forced a smile. “I'm alright. You were saying?”

She didn't look entirely convinced, and Lanyon felt himself beginning to sweat. She then shut her mouth, and walked over to the other side of the room, her eyes falling on a pistol and a few bullets that had been placed on the table. She picked the pistol up, before speaking once more.

“I'm going to be blunt,” Lucy said, as she began loading these bullets into her pistol. “Are you really my sister?”

“Of course I'm your sister! What makes you think I'm–”

He was interrupted by her pointing the gun at him. “Rachel doesn't dress like you do, or refuse a hug from me. And she most certainly don't have a rich girl accent like you.”

Lanyon paled. “Wh-What if I was just–“

She came forward, continuing to point the gun at him. “Tell me,” she said. “What's the name of Rachel's brother and my husband? Surely Rachel would know.”

Oh, hell.

“...John?”

She cocked the gun.

“Wrong answer.”

He cursed.

 


	11. After The Meal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> At the dinner, Rachel finds another lead.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back in the fanfiction posting! And so is this fic! Note that I have limited knowledge of what exactly happens at dinner parties, so feel free to correct me.
> 
> An adopted OC appears in here that I've mentioned before in my OCtober 2019 drabbles, and I'm proud to put him in here!

“You know, when I first came here, I thought that I was going to be sick,” Rachel told Hyde while he wiped his mouth with the napkin provided. “But dinner was actually alright. Thanks for your help with the forks and the spoons.”

“Don't mention it,” Hyde said. Then he looked Rachel in the eye, and put his napkin down. “Seriously. Don't mention it, ever again. Knowing which utensil to use and when may be something that I picked up as a night spirit, but next time I don't intend to help you or anyone else with such a thing.”

“Right, I'm sure you picked that up as a night spirit,” Rachel said, the disbelief clear in her (Lanyon's?) voice.

“But don't start relaxing,” Hyde said, as the host moved to stand up from his seat. “The hard part's just begun.”

Rachel's smile fell a little. “The...hard part?”

“Now, dear friends,” the host said. “Let us continue our conversations in other rooms.”

Hyde and Rachel watched the others agree, and the former stood up as well. “When Lanyon said you had to stay after the end of the meal, he meant it,” he said.

“Dinner wasn't enough talk, and now I have to do this?” Rachel asked in a nervous whisper.

“Come off it, you survived dinner.” He then waved a hand. “And I'm pretty sure Jekyll and Lanyon would do the same if they were here.”

Rachel looked at Hyde a little curiously, but before she could ask him anything, he walked forward after the other men. Sighing, she got up as well, and followed after the women.

“Dr. Lanyon?”

Rachel didn't notice that. But a hissed “Hey!” in Jekyll's voice did catch her attention, and she turned towards Hyde and the other men, who were looking at her.

“You weren't going after the women, were you, _Lanyon_?” Hyde asked, a little out of character for Jekyll.

Rachel then remembered that “Lanyon” meant her, and she immediately blushed. “Oh, uh...”

Several of the women noticed as well, and giggledamong themselves. Rachel walked over to Hyde, who frowned at her for a moment, before flashing a Jekyll-like smile at her.

(Almost...too Jekyll-like.)

“Now, Robert, I wouldn't blame you if you wanted to join their conversation,” he said pleasantly, “but I think you should come with us.”

“If only someone had told me that the first time I came to a dinner,” one of the men said. “I ended up in the same situation and was laughed out of the women's gathering.”

Several of the others looked at who talked – an older man, and he smiled awkwardly at them. “Too much information?” he asked.

Rachel stared at him, and then sighed in relief. At least she wasn't the only one here who had a similar experience. (Not that she didn't want to talk to the women, Lisa in particular, but she knew she couldn't do that in this body.)

“I'm sure we've all had similar experiences,” the host laughed. “But for now, let's go.”

The men and women went into separate rooms, Rachel following the former, while the staff cleaned up the dining room after them, As the men went into their room, Rachel noticed how Hyde was beginning to strike up a conversation with a certain Dr. Smith, who was speaking of a particular breakthrough he had made. His smile seemed a bit forced, true, but his posture, his eye contact, seemed...natural. It was a far cry from his terrible acting around her and the others.

Was Hyde...actually putting effort into being Jekyll here? Had he done something like this more than once?

As the men settled into the room and sat down, Rachel looked down at her hands. She then sighed. She had to try being Lanyon, didn't she? But what would Lanyon even do in this sort of situation?

Her eyes fell on the older man who had spoken about his own embarrassing experience before. He seemed nice. She guessed she should start from there. So she walked up to him, and cleared her throat, causing him to look up at her.

“Is this seat taken?” she asked, putting on a posh accent, pointing at an empty chair next to him.

“Not at all,” he said, and she sat down. She then put her hands on her lap, locking her fingers together. Where should she start now?

“So, uh...sir,” she said. “I appreciate you trying to make me feel better back there.”

“Think nothing of it,” he said, waving a hand. “Though I didn't expect such an error from you, of all people, Dr. Lanyon.”

“It happens to the best of us...er...” Shit. Did Lanyon know this man's name? But damn it, she wasn't Lanyon!

Before she could say anything else, the man chuckled. “I suppose it was too much to expect you to remember my name,” he said, a tad unhappily, yet not angrily. “I'm Dr. William Grye. One of the biology professors at, you know...”

“Oh, right!” Rachel said, trying to convince him that she hadn't only heard of him now. “Dr. Grye. My apologies.”

He nodded, and she crossed her legs. “How are the students?” she asked.

If he had noticed anything strange about “Lanyon's” mannerisms, he didn't say it. He did, however, give her a questioning look. But he jumped in, “My students are doing marvelously. They're always eager to learn. You know, just the other day, they discovered a rare specimen while in the garden.”

“Really?”

“Yes. It was quite a shock to us, too. One would normally find those sorts of insects living in the mountainous areas, but you never know, apparently.”

“Uh-huh,” she said, nodding. She was suddenly at a loss for words. Was she supposed to sound smart?

“You seem a little out of it, Dr. Lanyon,” Grye said. “Is everything alright?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah. I'm just...not in the mood for talk of science right now.”

He blinked. She realized her accent had slipped, and she covered her mouth. Then he leaned back in his seat. “Well, you should have thought of that before attending a dinner with members of the Royal Society,” he joked.

“I – uh – it's just one of those nights, I suppose!” She laughed nervously. Hopefully her accent was good enough now. Either way, it didn't seem like this was going well.

Grye, on the other hand, nodded slowly. “Are you bored?”

“No, but – I...”

He watched her for some time, before asking, “Are you feeling well? Not under the weather?”

“I'm fine!” she said, almost defensively.

“...If you're sure,” he said.

That was probably out of line. She didn't know if she heard suspicion in his voice or not, but he changed the subject before she could wonder about it some more.

“Hmm...some time before, didn't Dr. Jekyll take in a werewolf from Bethnal Green?”

“He did.”

“Then I think you'd be interested in this. Another werewolf has shown up recently.”

Rachel felt her jaw drop. “Another...werewolf?”

“Yes. Quite the large one, too. Strangely enough, the werewolf appeared in the yard of a friend of mine. My friend took her in, since she seemed positively confused as to where she was.”

“ 'She'?”

“The werewolf.”

Rachel leaned forward. “When was this?”

“Last night,” he said.

Rachel fell silent, and then looked down for a second. Could it be...?

“Thank you, Dr. Grye,” she said, looking back up at him. “I feel Henry and I would be very interested in that.”

“Do you want to meet this werewolf?” he asked pleasantly. “Of course, I don't think my friend would have a problem with it.”

“Of course,” she said. “I'll tell Dr. Jekyll.”

Grye nodded. She then turned towards Hyde, who had finished chatting and now looked like he was ready to slump in his chair.

“Edward,” she whispered, tugging at his jacket sleeve.

He looked at her. “What?” he asked. “I thought you were getting along well with the old man there.”

“I was, and he is nice – but listen,” she said.”He told me a friend of his encountered a werewolf last night and took them in.”

“Werewolves could come from anywhere; look at your wolf boy,” he said.

“This happened last night!” she insisted. “Edward, what if it has something to do with what happened to us?”

Hyde looked away. “...You're not saying it's Jasper in Morcant's body, are you?”

“What do you think I'm saying?” She persisted, “I'm just saying we should exhaust all our leads until we figure out what's going on.”

Hyde didn't look back at her. He seemed to think for a moment. Then he turned towards the others.

“My apologies, good sirs, but Dr. Lanyon and I will be taking our leave,” he said.

As Rachel heard him express the formalities of men leaving early, she wondered if he was really considering what she thought, or if he was just looking for an excuse to leave at last.


End file.
